Money Gift Registries: Do You Mention Your Gift in a Wedding Card?

Giving money to a newly-married couple used to be a no-brainer: You'd slip a few crisp bills into a store-bought wedding card, which you'd hand to the bride and groom later at the reception. Or if the money was in the form of a personal check, you'd probably mail it a few weeks before the big day. At some point after the wedding, you'd get a thank-you card acknowledging your generous gift.

Lots of folks still give cash or a check as a wedding present, but many others are giving monetary gifts through honeymoon and cash registry sites like Honeyfund and Zola. While the sites are easy to use—whether you're designating that your funds should go toward a kayaking excursion or giving a meal kit subscription—the etiquette associated with monetary gifts is still a bit murky. The two most common questions are answered below.

Do you send them a wedding card?

Yes. Even if you used a traditional gift registry, sending a card and wishing the couple happiness is a nice thing to do. And every couple will appreciate a little happy snail mail when they're suffering from the post-wedding blues.

Should you mention the gift in the card?

No. Just as you wouldn't say, "Congratulations! I'm enclosing a $75 check with this card," you wouldn't mention your cash registry gift. Since they already know about it since you sent the gift a few weeks before the wedding, there's no need to remind them in a card.